Bhutan's help sought for restoring Manas National Park

In a bid to remove the tag of 'world heritage site-in-danger' from the Manas National Park, the Centre and Assam government have approached Bhutan for help in revival of the picturesque animal reserve.

In a bid to remove the tag of 'world heritage site-in-danger' from the Manas National Park, the Centre and Assam government have approached Bhutan for help in revival of the picturesque animal reserve.

The park has been languishing ever since it was declared a world heritage site-in-danger in 1992 after almost 95 per cent of its infrastructure and most animals were affected by the protracted Bodo agitation for a separate state.

In July last year, a last-ditch effort was made by the government at the Quebec meeting of the World Heritage Committee for withdrawal of the tag, but that too ended in a failure.

Since the park is divided into two parts -- the Manas National Park in Assam and the Royal Bhutan Sanctuary across the Manas river in Bhutan -- the government has approached the neighbouring country for speeding up conservation work.

"Yes, we have submitted a trans-border cooperation programme to the Royal Bhutan government as bigger animals like tigers and rhinos need additional habitat which is important for their long term conservation," park's director, A Swargiari, has said.